Adidas feels the pain over 'Arfica'

The All Blacks' jerseys were repossessed by the embarrassed sponsors as soon as the test was over. Photo / Getty Images

Dan Carter tweeted this picture of the error on his jersey before the match.

Adidas recalled the All Blacks' playing jerseys last night after an embarrassing error saw the word "Arfica" misspelt on the players' kit.

Star first five Dan Carter tweeted a picture of the misspelt word, drawing ridicule from Springbok fans.

In a statement, an adidas spokeswoman said the firm accepted responsibility for the mistake.

"Adidas New Zealand have become aware that the All Blacks jerseys for the test versus South Africa have an embroidered spelling error.

"The players' jerseys are being collected after the game to have the error rectified. Adidas apologises to the players for any inconvenience."

Dan Carter tweeted this picture of the error on his jersey before the match.

It capped off a tough night for Carter, who left the field injured in the 15th minute after a crunching tackle from Bismarck du Plessis which sparked an all-in shoving match. Du Plessis was later sent off for a second yellow card. French referee Romain Poite copped criticism for some puzzling decisions.

All the pre-match talk was about the Springboks ending a 76-year drought at Eden Park, but the All Blacks were far too strong in winning 29-15, with stand-in skipper Kieran Read scoring two tries. Read and bad boy Ma'a Nonu spent the final minutes in the sin bin after an at times ill-tempered game.

Prime Minister John Key scored the first points of the night, joining injured captain Richie McCaw in the commentary box before kickoff. Key put his hand on McCaw's shoulder and referred to him as "big fella".